Global Learning Charter Public School Staff Attend Professional Training at West Coast Qualcomm Thinkabit Lab

Global Learning Charter Public School (GLCPS) Director of School Culture Darlease Monteiro and Technology Teacher Alyssa St. Don attended the West Coast Qualcomm® Thinkabit Lab™ Summit in San Diego, CA to learn about new curriculum for the school’s Thinkabit Lab™ and about new initiatives developed at Qualcomm®.

In 2023 GLCPS opened the only Thinkabit Lab™ on the East Coast in their new state-of-the-art STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) education center for students.

The Joan and Irwin Jacobs Center building for STEAM education is named for the Qualcomm® founder, GLCPS benefactor and New Bedford native Dr. Irwin Jacobs and his wife.

At the Thinkabit Lab™ students explore engineering and non-engineering careers available at tech companies and engage in fun and unique hands-on engineering projects. Together, the career exploration and engineering activities help students understand where they might fit in the future workforce and how they could contribute to solving real-world problems using technology.

Qualcomm is a company of inventors and cares deeply about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Through the Qualcomm Thinkabit Lab™ program they aim to show students from all cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds that they can be part of inventing the wireless world of the future.

“Our creative juices are flowing and we’re really excited about implementing everything we’ve learned in the upcoming school year. This is professional development at its best,” said Monteiro and St. Don.

“Our students love the learning opportunities that the Thinkabit Lab™ offers them with hands-on experience developing and manufacturing things and running a business,” said Stephen Furtado Jr., Executive Director of GLCPS. “It is a joy to watch the students take in the new technology and learn about what is possible in their future.”

About Global Learning Charter Public School

Open to New Bedford residents, Global Learning Charter Public School (GLCPS) is a tuition-free public charter school that currently serves 500 students in grades 5-12. Launched in 2002 as a Horace Mann charter school, GLCPS became a Commonwealth charter school in 2006. In order to generate a culture of personalization, the school setting and class sizes are deliberately small. Students, faculty and administration know each other well and teachers are able to tailor the curriculum to the needs and level of each student. GLCPS offers an exciting and challenging interdisciplinary curriculum that follows and builds upon the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. Students learn to work collaboratively in teams, use technology meaningfully in their coursework, strengthen all elements of their communication skills, as well as develop the necessary skills to become engaged and ethical contributors to a global society. GLCPS capitalizes on the exceptional resources of the region (for example, marine sciences), and ties these resources to their curriculum and instruction. Additional information is available on the school’s website at www.glcps.org or call 508-991-4105.